“Blackened” Electronica is such an isolated genre, that when a reviewer hears it, he or she immediately wants to embrace it if for no other reason than to encourage further bands within the scene. You want to see more of it; I know I certainly do.

From the opening of “Torment And Anguish,” I knew this would be Hell’s Infernal Disco, though and through—more lethal than the Electric Hellfire Club, more vicious than the ambient Archon Sathani, and far more evil than Delta 9 could ever be.

The surprise here, is that this is actually, in the spiritual sense, Black Metal. It’s not like The Phoeron, wherein it's evil and sinister, but essentially esoteric electronica. Certainly, this has keyboards and electronic beats…but this is Harsh Black Metal in every sense. This is utterly kult. Check out a track like “Regret”: if a band like Schizoid remixed tracks by Leviathan, you’d get something like this.

This compares favorably to long-forgotten pioneers like Mysticum and Helheim (FENRIS LP). But unlike those bygone artists, this actually excels in its electronic elements—they’re not merely an additive or a gimmick; rather, they are an integral part of this band. “The Next Time…” has a somber, mournful feel similar to any of the “blackened funeral doom” bands…and yet it is entirely machine-based. It’s like early Mortiis with balls.

This might sound experimental, but it’s really all quite sound. It’s a meeting point for Black Metal buffs and Goth/Industrial types—Black Wizards and TechnoMages. Fans of both Darkthrone and Coil could enjoy this…how often do you hear that? Not often enough, I’d say.